That night, sensing the farmsteaders’ unease at having strangers at their fires, Kira and Nessa made their own fire a short distance from the wagons. There they ate their share of the stew the steaders had cooked. Nessa also continued Kira’s instruction in combat, going over moves learned the day before, and teaching her more. Nessa was surprised at how quickly the girl learned.
They passed a peaceful night under the stars, each traveler taking his or her turn at watch, and were underway again before sunup. This day, Kira rode her own horse, but stayed close to Nessa. She named the horse Monster, because that is what he looked like to her when he occasionally bared his teeth. By the end of the day, they were friends, and neither was nervous around the other. According to Nessa, this was important. You needed to be able to trust your mount.
Sunset brought a halt to the journey, once again. The two of them were taking their position a little way away from the others, and Kira was working on lighting the fire. Suddenly, a huge form burst from the ground nearby, scattering their horses.
It was a troll, huge and black. It went straight for Kira, ignoring the other form already crouching to retaliate. Kira stumbled back, groping for her weapon. By the time her weapon was out, Nessa had made a deep slash in the monster’s side, drawing its attention away.
Kira’s mind went blank at that moment. She saw the creature turn toward Nessa, and she lifted her blade, burying it to the hilt in the monster’s ribcage. Its arm swung back, weakly batting Kira aside, then it fell to the ground unmoving.
It was then that Kira realized the battle wasn’t over. Nessa was trading swipes with another of the beasts. Kira worked to pull her sword from the troll, but it was stuck. All she could do was watch Nessa.
The Sword Maiden dodged, slashed and pirouetted about the troll, frustrating it at every turn. She seemed to be waiting for something. Perhaps she was letting it wear itself out, or maybe she was struggling to get in through its superior reach. Whatever the case, Nessa finally chose her moment, going in underneath an overreaching slash, and gutting the monster. She spun around and with her next swipe took off the monster’s head.
Stunned, Kira could only stare at the Sword Maiden. She had never seen such a thing as what had just happened. And she desperately wanted to learn how to do it herself.
During the course of the combat, the steaders had stood aloof, merely watching it unfold. It was over quickly, but not so quickly the crossbowmen could not have done some good, and Nessa pulled Stanold aside and let him know this in very certain terms. Stanold went away from the exchange a much paler red than usual.
Kira’s lesson that night was how not to get her sword stuck in her adversary.
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